World’s Largest Pro-Am Makes ShopRite Classic Work

Photo: Mike Lawrence for ShopRite LPGA Classic

GALLOWAY, NEW JERSEY | You have to see it to understand. For those who have ever wondered about the economics of a non-major LPGA Tour event, the ShopRite LPGA Classic presented by Acer is the perfect case study, one that, once you experience it up close and personal, provides an “aha moment” look into why events like this succeed.

Photo: Mike Lawrence for ShopRite LPGA Classic

The ShopRite, as it’s commonly known, started in 1986. Juli Inkster won the first one. It has one of the longest histories on the LPGA Tour. But why? What does ShopRite, a grocery store chain with stores from Maryland to Massachusetts, gain from a 54-hole LPGA Tour event in southern New Jersey, “down the shore” as the locals say?

It’s televised on Golf Channel, which provides value to be sure. And the community engagement is outstanding. Grandstands on the Bay Course at Seaview Resort in Galloway are always respectably full, even this year in brisk October conditions. And the resort itself is a gem of a pl...